Stepping out (from an airplane) for a sm oke?

“BRISBANE, Australia (AP) -- A French woman who is terrified of flying admitted in an Australian court Monday that she drunkenly tried to open an airplane door mid-flight to smoke a cigarette.

Sadrine Helene Sellies, 34, was placed on a good behavior bond after pleading guilty in Brisbane Magistrates Court to endangering the safety of an aircraft.

Sellies was traveling on a Cathay Pacific flight from Hong Kong to the east coast city of Brisbane on Saturday when the incident occurred at the start of a three-week Australian vacation with her husband, the court heard.

She walked toward one of the aircraft's emergency exits with an unlit cigarette and a lighter in her hand and began tampering with the door, prosecutors said. But a flight attendant intervened and took Sellies back to her seat.”

“I thought you couldn't carry lighters on a plane anymore?”

“She actually found someone to marry her? Unbelievable...”

“Talk about an opportunity for a Darwin award...”

“Hey, when you gotta smoke ....you gotta smoke. At least she was trying to be respectful. :o)”

“Cathay Pathetic's security system leaves a lot to be desired...it's based in Hong Kong...”

“A French woman has admitted attempting to open an aeroplane door mid-flight so that she could smoke a cigarette.

Sandrine Helene Sellies, 34, who has a fear of flying, had drunk alcohol and taken sleeping tablets ahead of the flight from Hong Kong to Brisbane.

She was seen on the Cathay Pacific plane walking towards a door with an unlit cigarette and a lighter.

She then began tampering with the emergency exit until she was stopped by a flight attendant.

Defence lawyer Helen Shilton said her client had no memory of what had happened on the flight on Saturday, and that she had a history of sleepwalking.

She pleaded guilty to endangering the safety of an aircraft at Brisbane Magistrates Court and was given a 12-month A$1,000 (£429) good behaviour bond - she will forfeit the money if she commits another offence.

The French tourist was at the start of a three-week holiday in Australia with her husband.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/4456076.stm”

“Is there an echo in here?”

“It was either this or start a new thread.”

“Thanks for the update V.

Now we know what they mean by the expression "dumber than dirt!"”

“

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- FBI investigators said Mark McGovern of Orlando was the unruly passenger who caused a United Airlines flight to be diverted to Charlotte.

Authorities said he lit a cigarette, argued with a flight attendant, then urinated in the plane's aisle.

McGovern was taken off flight 1502 in Charlotte over the weekend and questioned by police, spokeswoman Robin Urbanski said.

The man was "acting extremely inappropriately," Urbanski said. "When you want to run a safe airline, we don't tolerate that type of activity on our aircraft."

Flight attendants noticed that McGovern appeared drunk not long after the plane left Orlando, Urbanski told a North Carolina television station. McGovern later lit a cigarette and allegedly began to argue with a flight attendant who asked him to put it out, she said.

He obeyed, but when the flight attendant walked away, he allegedly stood up and urinated, Urbanski told the station.

http://www.local6.com/news/5406673/detail.html”

“I swear I only hit "Submit" once.
last edited: 11/28/05 2:18:55 PM”

“I guess the guy was really pissed off.”